15 years in focus: Edeline Lee and James Cropper celebrate craft, material, and legacy in a British-made commemorative book

There is something quietly radical about a fashion book celebrating 15 years of Edeline Lee being made entirely in Britain. Not just printed here, but created from the fibres up, in collaboration with British artisans and heritage makers.

When Edeline Lee decided to mark her milestone, she chose to replace the traditional runway show with a more considered approach. The book became the season’s central creative statement, a tangible archive that tells the story of the brand, its creative philosophy, and the people who have inspired it. Editors, buyers, cultural leaders, and collaborators received it directly at London Fashion Week and were invited to engage with the pages and narrative in a way that mirrors Edeline’s hands-on approach to design.

Bringing this vision to life required three essential ingredients: a papermaker with over 180 years of expertise, printers with meticulous craft, and a designer committed to material integrity. What united them was conviction. Where something comes from, how it is made, and who makes it matters, not just for quality, but for the story it tells.

The papers for the book were produced at James Cropper’s historic Burneside Mill. Coloursource™ papers supplied by James Cropper and Winter & Company were chosen to create subtle variations in texture, weight, and opacity, giving each page a presence that mirrors the emotional cadence of 15 years of design. Stocks include Coloursource™ Harvest 135gsm, Ice White 270gsm and 135gsm, Bright White 135gsm, and Pristine White 135gsm, all supplied exclusively by Winter & Company. Each selection was made to ensure that the book is tactile as well as visual, a physical object that carries the touch and attention of every hand involved in its creation.

“I strongly felt that the book needed to feel hand-made by individuals, just as our clothes, our productions, and our projects feel. We selected papers based on weight, texture, and depth. I hope the materials reflect the body of work in our story,” says Edeline Lee. “The paper, the ink, the stitching of the binding, all of these shape how the work is felt emotionally. Material choices are part of the narrative, not just a container for it. The physicality of an object creates a connection between something real and tangible and the idea behind it. We chose papers with weight, texture, and depth because I wanted every page turn to feel intentional, almost ceremonial.”

Printing and binding were handled by FE Burman and Diamond, ensuring that every detail of the publication met the same exacting standards as Edeline’s couture pieces. The book is designed to be interacted with. Shortly after the launch, each guest received a printed insert detailing the new collection, allowing them to complete their volume, a playful echo of Edeline’s studio practice, where every decision is deliberate, and every detail matters.

“I really wanted this book to be a celebration and acknowledgement of the countless people who have sweated and laboured alongside me to contribute to this journey, both in my studio and beyond it,” Lee explains. “There are 1500 creative friends, companies, colleagues, mentors, and advisors who have supported, inspired, challenged, and held me and the business up in their different ways in the past 15 years. This book is about them as much as it is about me.”

At first glance, it appears to be a fashion book. But at its heart, it is a demonstration of what British manufacturing can achieve when craft, care, and shared values converge. Every stage, from papermaking to printing to binding, happened in the UK. Every page carries the integrity of the makers, the thoughtfulness of the designer, and the heritage of the mill. The book does not just document history; it embodies it.

“I strongly felt that the book needed to feel hand-made by individuals, just as our clothes, our productions, and our projects feel. So, we chose papers that have a beautiful weight, quality, texture, and hand-feel,” Lee adds. “All my fabrics are dyed and finished in Yorkshire and Leicester, and then each piece is designed, cut, sewn, pressed, and finished in London. Even our knitwear is knitted, linked, and finished in England. Being a British brand, committed to British manufacturing, it was important to us to fabricate this beautiful object with artisans close to home. We could not have made this book without the support and generosity of British heritage paper-makers James Cropper, Bermondsey printer FE Burman, and Enfield bookbinders Diamond Print Services.”

This collaboration builds on a decade-long relationship. For her Autumn/Winter 2016 show at London Fashion Week, Edeline Lee partnered with James Cropper to create a unique, tactile set at The Vinyl Factory. That show was widely praised, earning coverage in Frame Magazine’s Happening 2 book, and placing Edeline alongside Dior, Moncler, Prada, and Acne Studios as one of the five most creative shows of the week. Ten years later, that ethos of collaboration and material innovation continues in the pages of this book.

For James Cropper, the project represents more than paper. “This collaboration reinforces our position at the intersection of heritage and contemporary culture,” says Jordan Scott, Head of Marketing. “It demonstrates that paper can be more than a medium. It acts as an active participant in storytelling and a celebration of design that is meant to endure.”

For Edeline Lee, the book is a culmination of 15 years of careful, considered work. It is an object that connects directly with the people who have shaped her journey, the studio teams, the creative collaborators, and the editors and curators who have supported her vision. It is also a story of British craft, showing what can be achieved when artisans and designers work together with trust and curiosity.

Every tactile detail was considered. The texture of the paper, the weight of the stock, the thread in the binding, and the reaction of the ink all informed how the work would be perceived. “Each minute decision about the book was made in consultation with the makers. Every millimetre accounted for, from the quality of the thread to the reaction of the inks on our paper. It was not too dissimilar to the decision-making behind our clothing designs,” Lee explains. “Material choices are part of narrative. The physicality of an object creates a connection between something real and tangible and the idea behind it.” The book invites engagement, whether it is held, flipped through, or completed by the recipient.

The Coloursource™ papers supplied by James Cropper, alongside the Winter & Company Pristine White stock, carry more than just the story of the book. They carry the story of British supply chains, of water drawn from the River Kent, of generations of craftsmanship and skill, and of a commitment to excellence. Every sheet, every page, every binding decision reflects the same level of care and consideration that goes into Edeline Lee’s couture designs.

Putting the story in context

15 years of work, collaboration, and experimentation are condensed into a single object. The book is a celebration of creativity that is both painstaking and joyful, of legacy that is as tactile as it is visual, and of craft that refuses to compromise. Like the best couture, it is designed to endure, to be revisited, and to communicate purpose before a single word is read.

“The book needed to feel tangible, to create an emotional connection,” Lee says. “I love being able to visit the printers while the pages for the book were being printed, and watching the binders stitching the pages together. Knowing each hand that has touched our pieces with love and care gives the work attention to detail that would be difficult to achieve from an anonymous distance.”

The project is a reminder that British manufacturing can excel at quality, sustainability, and scale. The book tells two stories at once, one of a designer’s vision realised over 15 years and one of heritage craft executed with care and intelligence. Both are essential. Both deserve to be held, and both become richer when they are local.

The Edeline Lee commemorative book is not simply a publication. It is a hand-held archive, a tactile celebration of design, and a demonstration of what can be achieved when heritage, craft, and creativity converge. In a world increasingly digital and instantaneous, it is a deliberate, considered object, proof that making things well, in the right place, with the right people, still matters.